Wheel and rail lubricator.



J'. CASSIDY, A.IB. METGAL'FE &.S. J. CSSIDY, WHEEL AND RAIL LUBRIGATOP. APPLICATION HLEIQ JULY 31, 1913.

l ,.6973704. Patented May 26, 1914 fi f Wwf M MME@ y;

1 UNITED sra'rns Para OFFICE.

James cassini', ARTHUR n Mercure; ND SAMUEL J. Gassner, or sYnAcUss;

'NEW YORK. i

'WHEEL AND RAIL LUBICATOR.

1,6 the wheels. of the rolling stock.

It is well knownthat the friction pro- .dllced by contact between the flanges of the wheels with the ball or head of the. rails in passing around curves and also through frogs, automatic Iswitches and like appliences produces excessive wear both upon the fiange o thev wheel and upon the ball or head of the rail to such an extent as to require frequent and expensive repairs and 2,5`that this friction also produces more or less objectionable noise particularly ihelectric railway systems of cities and other con! gested districts.

Qur object therefore, is to provide simple and practical means for lubricating the contacting portions 'of the wheels and rails at any point or points along the line of the .railway where friction between the rails is liable to produce excessive wear or noise. In other Words, we have sought to render this lubrication automaticand positive lat the points desired by causing the Wheels to travel in contact with a lubricator or lubricant absorbers'confinedin suitable containers or'reservoirs which are relatively fixed in close proximity to the rails in the path of the moving lianges of the car wheels and in proximity to the points of the rails to be lubricated so that as the wheels approach such-points, their flanges will automatically take up a part of the lubricant and distribute' it-to the portions of the rails with which they come incontact.

Another object is to provide means for closing the ends of the containers through which the flanges must pass so as .to/eileo-f,

tively confine' the lubricant absorbcpttluuein and :it the same time allow the' wheels to pass through the upper poptionf the n Specification of Letters Patent. Application med July 31, 1913. Serial No. 782,377. v

. Patenten May 26,1914.

. container'sjwithout excessive :frictionthere- 55 with.` i

A further object is to provide means for` automatically litting the absorbent material.A A

containing the lubricant into operative poslt-ion for contact with the flanges of the wheels' as the absorbent becomes worn or compressed. y,

Otherobjects and uses relating to specific vparts of' the` lubricating system will be brought out in the following description. In the drawings-Figurel is atop plan i of a track showing a curve and our improved lubricant lcontaining.; reservoirs securedlto the railsthereo at either end of the curve. Fig. 2 is an enlarged `transverse 70 sectional view through one of the rails and adjacent reservoirs taken' on line 2 2, Figi 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal secl tional view through the same reservoir.

In 'order that our invention may be clearly 75 understood, we have shown a single track 1 having a curve 2 the track being composed in this instancc'of T-rails --3 secured in the usual manner to Vties 4 for supporting the wheels as A g of the 89 cars which are adapted to'inove along and upon said track.

The lubricant device forming the 'subiet' matter of our present invention coinprises a trough-like reservoir 5 having one 85 ,side secured by suitable bolts 6- to the inner' side of the web of the rail 3 for receiving and confining a body 7 of lubricant absorbent. such as waste, wicking or equivalent material capabic of being satu- `90 rated with oil or similar lubricant. These reservoirs are preferably secured 'to the inner sides of both rails just in advance of, the points to be lubricated as for example at the ends of a curve so that the flanges of the wheels oi the cars or motor traveling in either direction will take up a suliicient quant-ity of lubricant from` the reservoirs to distribute along and lubricatc the inner sides of thehoads or balls of Ithe rails, it being 10 ,unflei-stoml, ot course, that a similar Iresult will be produced upon frogs and switch points by properly locating the reservoirs that the lubricant absorbent will come in l El railways While the width of the i in which the luurieant. fonti-ned suilioient o receive the flange i he' l. 'wif nit Jrietion with the sides of r'ier'fon.\ in order that eacl reservoir may oe serrata-ely held in place, ias outer side is fitted snugly against the h ner face of the v, eb of the rail FF3- and between the head and base ilanges thereof so that the bottoni is in eloee proximity to the lower iange While the inner eide is of greater vertical. depth than the enter ide and extends upwardly to ap proximately the same plane as the upper suriieoe of the head of the rail, thereby produc-A in a confining channel for the lubricant of eonstderable vertical depth, said channel be- 'ing' open at the top to permit the flange oi the wheel to travel therethrough in Contact with the lubricant absorbent. Portions oi' the ends of the reservoi 'tend upwardly iroin the bottom to a plane in proximity to `the lower face of the head or ball of the rail to allow ample clearance for the passage oi th ange of the Wheel Aw through the nnelwithout friction with the iixed portions et said ends which serve to additionu ally Confine the lubricant absorbent 37- ap inst. endwise displacement, from the 'resoir.

As a 'further means for confining this lu 'n teant against displacement from the upper ,Y vs of Ithe fixed portions of the ends1 We ha provided said xed ends with movable ons MS which in this instance are d atl-luto the xed endv portions n incline upwardly and inwardly theree n an angle of less than 459 So as to n ally overhang the adjacent portions of iuhrieant absorbent 7- or o suffi- Width 'to extend between the inner face "he hail ot' the rail 3* and inner side w reservoir with enough clearance to them to move Yfreely. In other the inner ends of the Wings oi the tes -Srw are norm ally disposed in apiniatolif the saine plane as the upper ot the ball of the rail and are yieide i held in this position by springs -l0 n more clearly 1n Fie". 3, the hinged Ahe gates being provided with abutor limiting stops 11M engaging the n edges of the fixed portions of the ends oi e reservoir tb limit their upward swing iveznent.

i t anale of inclination of the gates FS-u is siiffh that thelivlieels of a ear may pass and depress them in either direction,

OTQ

v operating not only to Confine the ,I3- i mated waste within the reservoir wirbt-iso displacement but also serv suoli, ivasir-, under the action of the wheels to express the oil ovard the center for Contact flanges of the wheels.

A follower #12, niovabie the reservoir and spring-p o itoiee il to llera dangers oi? of wardly by springs -`l3- saturated waste upwardly and upper Surface in the path oit the tlieltraveling Wheels.

lt .is now apparent that the main t f of our invention Censis s in nonni 'ieled reservoir along and to the bali or head oi.' the rai' side thereof with its open 'A the flanges of the wht` ,i and cantal oilmaiurated body of Waste eo?" material disposer., with upper su the path of the Wheel flange so that tina wheel flanges rolling,r through the chan will taire up `oil throughout its periphe and distribute the saine to the rail at curves` or other places Where liibrieution is nece sary. f5.

l r iianges comprising aI reservoir it, la

and 'wh eel arra of l along the inner' side oi? the rail and open at alb the top an Containing* a iubrieant in the path oi the dinge ot the Wheel as 'it 'nieves alongthe rail.

A iubrie'it` "device 'for rails and 'wiaiei flanges ieomprisine' a reservoir armaA along the inner side of the rail and open .'1 the top and containing a iubrieant l' path of the Hangin o'i:' the iv along the rail, and i" ,oimr in the rem voir sprintf-pressed upwadljy' for tore-int: l,

said absorbent body toward the top ot the reservoir.

4. A device for lubricating?rails and o flanges minimising a reelservoir secured to inner side oi the rail absorbent havingr its upper suii'ifaee t n io" ed, in the path of the wheei--ilange :is the Wheel moves alon the raih and movable i on the ends oi the reservoir iol confining: the absorbent" against endwise disp) aeenient. l

ln witness whereof 'we have liereuiito set our hands. Y

i u o and containing an oil lll) 

